Deus Ex: Redefined
by OrigenxCepheus
Summary: When everything Adam worked so hard to restore falls apart anyway, he leaves his past behind to make atonement. He returns to Detroit, however, when the appearance of "augmented terrorists" calls him away from pursuing the Illuminati. There, he comes in contact with one of these augs, an amnesiac boy named Reese Macx. Thus, begins Adam's investigation of "The Watchers"...(DXMD AU)
1. Chapter 1

**prologue**

"This doesn't seem like it will work. This isn't a controlled lab test you have going here; you let them loose in the real world. And for what?"

"With good reason, I assure you. You will just have to wait and see what happens because I am not going to explain myself to the likes of you."

"Fine, you're the one in charge of this project... And the one that has to answer to _him_ if this goes south."

"It won't ' _go south_ '; that I assure you of, Dismas; as well as of our safety from DeBeer's Page's suspicions. Not that they will matter anymore if this works out. We'll be rid of his little sect and all of those useless vermin clogging up our power with their nattering and mindless avarice and jealousy."

"...Whatever the case, what do we do if the subjects themselves become aware of this game? Especially _that_ one? You know he's already getting close to the answer; if he figures it all out, he will turn on us without hesitation. Not to mention that not only are you adding in the element of Enoch –who isn't ours so who knows what he will do and what he is capable of these days now that he isn't under Sarif's thumb. And we still have one more variable you refuse to take into account. The Archangel who, as you may recall, got himself out; we did not release him for this. And the one we're letting run around, well... He's not a big problem but that strong will of his; even stripping his memories didn't take it away..."

"Then, it is all going to get very interesting~. Despite what you say, it is STILL a science experiment, my friend; if it messes up, we go back to the drawing board and try again. Nothing that happens can hurt us; you should know that by now. Not Azriel, not the Archangel, not Sarif's former attack dog, and certainly not our so-called 'White Ripper' Pouriel"

"But what if something DOES happen that we cannot handle? Something is going to end up broken, and you can't replace what we have here, Samhain. Any of it. And if they lose all that work, guess who gets the trouble for that?"

"How many times do I have to tell you to stop worrying? Haven't I proven myself to you already? I am in control of all of this, I have plans for nearly every eventuality, and there is no way I won't get the results I want. "

"Very well, have it your way. Anyway, have you found 002 again, speaking of him? After he removed the lenses, he took the GPS chip with them. Ugh, I can't imagine the guts it took to rip that out of his own face."

"As a matter of a fact, I have. En route to the desired destination as we speak~. As I said, I planned for everything; not even the loss of exact location tracking can keep me from finding that boy."

"Incredible."

"Oh ye of little faith~.. It will work out~.

One way or another."

 **CHAPTER 1**

 **mirror and ripper**

 **OCTOBER 3RD, 2029, SKIES OVER THE ATLANTIC OCEAN**

Adam was lost in introspection when the message showed up in his in-box. He had so much to think about and did so often, but now the whirlwind of emotion and thought was especially closing in on and choking him. Maybe it was because it was the anniversary of all that had happened. Regardless, a brooding mood held onto Adam though he made an attempt to flip through his phone and distract himself until he reached his destination. Everything that happened played through his half-hearted tapping like a never ending film.

After the events that followed his return from Panchea those two years ago, he had questioned everything he had known and done. Most of all, he damned himself for choice he had made there under that hulking sea facility. He had taken out Darrow's signal and shaped it as Sarif wished, for in a display of rare naivety and optimism, he had had a hope for things to get better. His dream was that the technology, with the use of his DNA, would help people and the dissent would quiet. Humanity would not be free of all its problems, but at least that particular one would not hold them back.

Well, technology had indeed marched on, but the dissent, despite quieting for a time, had also gone on; growing more and more appalled at each new innovation it found problems with. He had rarely been home after his return, always out putting out fires, in both the literal and metaphorical sense, created both by zealous purists and overly emboldened augs who fought back. It made him tired, bitter and heart sick; Adam no longer felt he had done the right thing. He felt that lying had brought this upon himself and everyone around him. Karma, or whatever you wanted to call it was knocking on their door. And adding kindling to the fire, there was the Illuminati and others who he had come to realize existed. They were weakened by what had happened, but not completely brought down. They still had there hands in everything and were stirring up the anxiety and conflict of both augmented and unaugmented humans. Too much knowledge and too much suffering brought on around Adam by this and so much more; it was eating him from inside to out. He had to do something about it or he would go insane.

So Adam had left Sarif Industries and left Detroit without more than a few words to anyone. He had turned in notice to Sarif's office while the man he felt some grief against was gone, packed up only what he had need, and took the first train out of town. From there, it was a plane to another state, then another entirely out of the US and into the EU. There, Adam had begun formulating his plans to confront those he knew were somehow driving the return of conflicts: the Illuminati. This had brought him back in contact with the man who went by the handle of Gavin Quinn. He had not seen the man since Gavin — as Adam still referred to him to avoid confusion with his many other identities — had assisted Adam in taking down Pieter Burke. This time, however, Quinn offered assistance by bringing Adam in under the banner of the greatest rebellion against the Illuminati to exist, the Juggernaut Collective. They were a massive group made of hackers, soldiers, spies and so many more, and it was all under the foresight of a faceless being calling itself "Janus" that they were gathered to stop those puppeteering humanity.

Jensen was not entirely convinced of all Juggernaut's intentions, not even Janus, who talked the good talk as well as any, but he knew it would be far better than taking on the massive clan alone. He had joined them, then, and became a valuable and versatile agent; whether in disguise as Interpol as Quinn had been, as an assassin against Illuminati key members or as a simple reconnaissance runner; he did it all and did it well. In turn, Adam was becoming closer and closer to his goal of stopping the Illuminati and, hopefully, atoning for his mistakes. He was starting to feel some peace and believed himself close to his goal when the new problems began.

It was just a stray death here, an unexplained arson there, but the more it happened, the more people began to draw connections between the incidents. Soon, rumours arose of who was perpetrating the attacks: augmented terrorists. Adam was not convinced this was the case, but the incidents perpetuated further clamour and chaos that Juggernaut felt should not be ignored. Despite his protests to the contrary, Adam was the one sent to make sense of the mysterious deaths and damage.

It proved worse than chasing ghost, however. The trails left would suddenly vanish like sand through Adam's hands. A whisper here, gossip there, occasionally a shadowy recording, but there was nothing Jensen found that took him to a conclusive end. He was growing frustrated and had made known that he was going to go back to his quest with or without Juggernaut's help if they didn't stop running him around aimlessly.

"One more lead," he had been told. "One more and then we chalk it up as a lost cause."

Adam grudgingly accepted that, and was off once again. This time, he was returning to the US, Chikane ferrying him on what they agreed was a poor use of time. They had made the journey in silence; Chikane focused on his flying as he could feel his friend's tenseness, and Adam flicked through his emails listlessly as the aug tried to fight away that feeling of futility that continued to hiss up and down his spine like a cold chill. Jensen almost gave up and throw the device across the room in his frustration when the sender of a particular message caught his gaze and caused his eyebrows to shoot up and his lips to part in surprise.

Sarif. David Sarif had managed to find Adam's new contact address and reach out to him. The message itself added to Adam's surprise as he read it: "I think I know where to look for those 'aug terrorist' everyone is talking about."Adam thought it was a trick, but his doubt did not stand long. There was no way it was someone masquerading as the old augmentation manufacturer; no one outside of Juggernaut would have known to play such a joke, they had made sure to wipe his existence out from every form of data possible, nor would have chosen to do so in the guise of someone Jensen did not feel trust for anymore. How Sarif had managed it, Jensen could not fathom but it was little concern in the face of the messenger and what his message declared.

"Chikane," Jensen called out to the pilot as he opened the message. He did not entirely desire to, but if Sarif knew anything, Adam would put aside his petty emotions for his mission.

His eyes scanned over the words of the email, glazing over Sarif's apologies and attempts to justify his actions to get to the meat of the message. Just as the title stated, David made it clear he thought he had trustworthy evidence that something related to the unexplainable deaths and destruction was happening back in Detroit. Jensen was not entirely convinced, thinking it smelled of more lies, and was about to close it up and forget it but Sarif had included pictures. With nothing to lose, Adam reviewed them, cold surprise settling further and further into his breast. They were grainy, security footage, but it was enough to make out the vague shapes of humans; one enshrouded in flames but not burning, another hoisted above on tentacle-like protrusions on its back, and still another a bright white and blue wrapped figure with silvery grey arms that were impossible to mistake as anything other than augmented, the clearest of the images, partially crouched over the bodies of some local gang members laying strewn under the apartment camera that caught them. It was amazing, everything he had been looking for was back in the place he had left so hurriedly.

 _It is too good to be true,_ Adam thought grimly. _On the other hand—_

"You going to answer me, Boss?"

Adam jerked his head up at Chikane's voice, raised in his concern at Adam's lack of response. He was still tempted to dismiss it all; it would have been so easy to avoid Detroit and avoid Sarif. It did not take long to realize how irresponsible that would be, however. Swallowing his misgivings, Jensen looked up.

"How would you like to tour the air space of Detroit, Elias?" Adam made his statement slowly, trying to keep his tone casual.

"In a less round about way, Boss? Afraid I am not one for word play."

Despite his grim mood, Adam found it in him to roll his eyes and huffed. "I may or may not have something a little more useful than what our so-called intel agents gave us."

"That right? Hard to believe someone was that nice. Question is, are they for real?"

"Hell if I know, Elias, hell if I know. But it's worth the shot. How mad you think the upstairs people will be?"

"No one said they had to be aware where we're going." Chikane sounded almost mischievous, the tone causing Adam to shake his head.

"Janus will know," he replied. "I don't quite believe that he doesn't look at everything we get sent, after all."

Chikane seemed to think about that before responding, if only briefly. "He'll understand, I think."

With a shrug that was more satisfied than Adam would have portrayed in his voice or face, Jensen sat back in his seat. "Sounds like you're game. Let's get going, then. Home again home again... or something like that."

"Alright, Boss. Hang tight, then; we're turning this Bird around."

Indeed, Adam's chrome knuckles went taut as he felt the inertia working on the heli-vehicle and perhaps, with anxious anticipation. The man wondered dimly if he had made the right choice. That self-doubt that had settled in his heart over the past two years would not be shaken, even now. Adam felt there was but one thing to do for it; prove himself right this time.

Adam, for the first time in a very long time, really hoped that was possible.

 **THE BACK ALLEYS OF DETROIT, MICHIGAN**

The young man in white and blue dashed through the rain-swamped streets; avoiding the streets lights and searching out a way up to the rooftops above the soaking wet streets. He was on the run, to be sure, but from what, the few that paid him heed could not discern. Or perhaps, felt safer not getting involved. Besides, whoever that was, they were an aug. You did not want to mess with those right now.

Oblivious to the small talk of those he passed by, the boy came to a skidding halt in a dead end alley landscaped with dumpsters, trash that hadn't quite made it into the dumpster and a variety of laundry lines hanging from the residency here. It was a sharp, antiquated contrast against the modern city that denoted this as the poor section of the city. Whatever their meaning, to the young man, his thin body sopping wet and breathing out steam due to the cold air that burned his lungs, saw them as a means of egress rather than a block. He used them to nimbly clamber to the tops of the buildings; perching on the edge of one to scan below for any trouble. Nothing. Good, that meant that maybe whoever those freaks that had caught up with him from _that place_ had given up.

With that, he leaped off from his perch, the sky-high landscape becoming a playground to him. Chimneys and other raised pieces were spring boards; electrical wires and other cabling were a bridge to his next location. He could easily leap many distance with a good enough run and rarely had to catch an edge to keep from falling. Even when he did, though, he flipped back onto his feet gracefully and continued on. Nothing could stop him, nothing would catch him off-guard. Except maybe something flying over head

The young aug jerked his head up to watch a flying vehicle speed towards a black building with its glittering gold lights. The boy continued to keep his eyes in wonder and confusion on whatever the mysterious flying thing was as it lower out of sight. That thing had stirred something, some kind of memory of… something someone had told him he was suppose to do. The boy could not piece together what it was he was told, the voice was buried in watery haze of more lost memories, but he inferred that maybe, if he went to wherever that flying thing was, he could find some escape from the phantom pursuers on his tail. It looked enclosed enough to keep trouble off his tail. Yes, that is what he would do; he'd hide out there until he was sure he was safe. With a mighty leap, the young man rocketed down towards a power cable, using its rebound to shoot him up to his next foothold; ever working up and forward to his destination.

He had soon gained purchase atop an outside wall and peered down into what was some kind of private landing pad, the flying machine resting at the centre. He leaned forward to examine the figures coming from the vehicle more closely, though, it was more habit than out of any need; the retinal sensors implanted in his eye sockets made it more than easy to pick out the humans below. Even details were obvious to the sensitive prosthesis. A man in a coat of all around dark colouring and grim bearing and a dark-skinned man in some flight get-up with a militant demeanor emerged from the flying device and were making their way towards the door to the inside of the massive architecture before being stopped by some soft looking, brightly arrayed woman. Something about them made another nudge on the young man's consciousness, ordering him to go down amoungst them. Why though? He would have waged war with the prompting, but a flash of lightning and crack of thunder caused him to jump and the two below to look up. The boy froze as "Coat Man's" — as he had mentally dubbed the first man he had seen — gaze went from the light to the white and blue wrapped figure where he perched. The young man hoped the man would overlook him, think him just a trick of the storm, but they held each others gaze; one in shock, the other suspicion. So, the boy did what any one would when caught doing something they should not and have no other answer to deal with it with. He fled.

Adam was again wrapped up inside his one and million troubled thoughts when the Bird touched down at Sarif Industries in the centre of the stormy Detroit. He barely looked around as he clambered out, and when he did, he could only purse his lips and set his jaw. Things were dimmer than they had been, and parts of the formerly grand office was now just empty, damaged blackness. The city beyond the gates of the helipad was much the same from what Adam could see; the trash gone but things falling and returning to their state before Sarif Industries as the company lost its powerful grip in the wake of the many disasters. The company had tried to remain stable, but clawing for survival had done nothing, and with that, the city had fallen, too. At least in part; in the distance he could see where the burgeoning separation of augs and Naturals was causing a change in classes if the newer, richer edges of lofty buildings on one side contrasting heavily with the crumbling in the other part. If he and Juggernaut were to stop this taking place both here and all over the world, they had to act fast.

"Jensen!" the voice broke his thoughts into pieces, and the cyborg snapped his head towards it. Something of relief washed through him as he saw Malik approaching him at a quick trot.

Aside from some heavy settling of weight upon her hips, she was mercifully unchanged. She even had her flight suit on, probably getting ready to go out or having just come in.

"Malik." Adam met her halfway, face still unchanged but his tone warming as she closed in.

"Don't Malik me, Jensen; you owe me some kind of explanation for why you disappeared like you did without even a goodbye."

Adam winced as he met Malik's stern gaze, his glasses flicking back to reveal his gold and green eyes. It was true; he had gone away more abruptly than he had actually planned to. But he hadn't been able to think clearly enough to really have given anyone a clear message about what he was doing or where he was going. He would have to explain that to Faridah as best as possible.

"I'm sorry, Malik; I wasn't really thinking straight when I left. That's sort of half the reason I left without...saying much."

 _Good elaboration,_ Adam chided himself mentally for his shortness of words. _That will totally make her feel better._

Faridah, as he anticipated, didn't look convinced, her lips pursing and her hand resting on a hip. "Yeah, well, I figured that much out myself."

Adam sighed, raising his hands to fend off her exasperation. "I will make it up to you later, promise."

Malik nodded firmly."You had better."

"I promise, Malik. Really. I'm sorry. You've been a good friend, and I left you hanging. It won't happen again."

They eyed each other a moment longer, but the tenseness could not hold forever. Malik slowly smiled and put a hand on Adam's shoulder.

"Oh jeez, why do you make it so hard to stay mad at you? It's just good to see you back, Adam."

Adam returned the smile, howbeit smaller and more subtle. It had a brotherly sort of affection to it as he replied,"Good to see you to, Faridah."

Adam was about to inquire after the health of those who knew and to Sarif's doings, but a massive crack of lightning struck at a building somewhere near by and surprised both him and Malik into looking up at it. Adam paused as something in the light caught his attention.

A person. A person was crouched on the wall of the landing pad. How had he got up there? Better yet, what was he doing here? An aug, most likely, but even then— Adam turned around all the way, moved forward a step and opened his mouth to shout at the trespasser, but the other had already jumped from the wall.

Adam growled out a curse as he turned on his Smart Vision to track the flight of the thin figure. "Stay here, Malik."

"Adam!" Malik called after him but Jensen had already broken into a run, bent on catching on the intruder. Why, he did not know. He did not need this; Adam had more trouble, more conspiracy than anyone could ever want, but here he was, running right to it. He was here now, however, and in Adam's mind, there was no turning back. Maybe it was the right choice this time around.

Beneath the otherwise all consuming pounding of his feet and in-draw of breath, he wondered if it was just another attempt at self-atonement doomed to failure.

The young man had gone across many roofs and through many a street before looking back, confident he had lost his pursuer, but he had not, and in dismay, his eyes widened at the Coat Man as he pushed onward to catch up. How— There was no way—

More out of hurt pride that anyone could catch him then fear, the boy recklessly launching himself up to a street light and using it to catapult himself a great distance. Upon landing, he was on his feet and took off running again. A Cheshire grin of smugness spread on his soft face and he glanced back to catch sight of the big man that pursued him.

"Ha! Now what are you gonna do about that?" he said, his Scandavian accent adding a lilt to ever jeering word."Catch up if you can!"

"Okay." the gravelly voice came from in front of the boy instead of behind as he might have expected, and the thin aug's head twisted to face forward as he slammed into his pursuer full force. He splashed down into the puddle-ridden pavement and stared up dazedly at the grim man looking down at him with dimly lit gold eyes.

"… Where did you come from?" the boy groaned in surprise.

"I know a few shortcuts." No further reply was made as the man reached out to jerk the young man up. However, the white-blue clad boy kicked his hand away, catching Adam off guard long enough for the young man to leap to his feet and away from the man.

"Hands off, gammel mand!" he hissed and flicks his arms so blades slid out from the bottom of his lower arm.

Adam could not help but react with surprise when the blades emerged, pulsing with blue energy that lit the boy's pale face and white hair in pallid light. Even with the new augmentations he had seen and himself been equipped with, this was new. In the light, though, everything else seemed so much like Adam's.

From the boy's eyes mixed blue retinal sensors of mixed blues that scanned over Adam warily, to the lense like the one attached to Adam's own face– howbeit, one was missing and had left a vicious scar to match the one slashed across the young man's lip — down to one of his ears being augmented, he was no where near short of augmentation. Most glaring amoungst, though, was the sleek dark grey, blue and white gold accented arms. The young man's sleeves were rolled up so that the lower arms were exposed up to the elbow to reveal a smooth machinery the boy clearly had no deprecation of.

Something else hit Adam. He had seen this white and blue figure before. His temperature went chill as he remembered the blurry photos Sarif had attached to his email. This boy was the one who had taken down the gangbangers in the last one.

"Where are you going? Where did you get those?" Adam questioned without any airs of tact.

"None of your business, Nosy!" The answer seemed straight-forward enough, but even without turning the CASIE on, Adam could see the real answer.

"You don't know."

The boy lifted his thin chin spitefully, not feeling any desire to admit his lack of remembrance, but the action spoke volumes for him.

"What were you doing trespassing on Sarif Industry property?" Adam was trying to coax answer from the other more gently now, hoping the young man would calm down as Adam made an effort to show he offered no violence.

"I wasn't trespassing anywhere," the boy quipped. "I was lookin'."

"For what?"

The boy dropped his gaze and did not answer for a time. After long silence, he slid the blade back into his arm and backed away from Adam.

"… I dunno," he grudgingly admitted at last. "But I'm gonna find out sooner or later."

Before Adam could say more, the boy had scaled his way up one wall, jumping onto a fire escape to make the rest of his way up. Jensen tried to call him back, but by the time Adam had shouted "Wait!", the boy was atop the roof and sprinting out of sight. He was close to being a blur on the horizon that, even with the new augmentations Adam sported, he would be hard pressed to catch up with. Not that he gave up without an attempt to do so, and using his Icarus Dash to launch himself up the escape, Adam made his way up to the roof. While perhaps faster, he was simply not as nimble as the boy, however, and skidded to a halt at the edge of the roof as the young man dropped out of sight several buildings away.

With a curse, Adam flicked his smart vision back on and tried to pick up on the fast moving figure before he could get too far, but the boy was already gone in the all-encompassing rain and fog. The streets had descended into a silence that was broken only by the pattering of the downpour on the chipped and cracked rooftops.

"Gone," Adam muttered to himself darkly. That did not sit well with him, for a thought began to settle into his thoughts now that he was not pressed by the presence of the other aug, one brought about by remembrance of the purpose of him being here.

That kid was one of the so-called terrorists he was looking for, and as such, Adam would have tried to hunt the boy down. He had a feeling it would prove fruitless if he just went looking. The young aug would be watching for Adam now. He would hide himself from Adam. Therefore, he decided it was high time he met with Sarif and found out what he knew, little as he wanted to. If he knew more, then it might be possible to figure out where the boy in white might turn up next. Turning, Adam jumped down from the rooftop and landed on his feet in a cloud of light and soft sound produced by his Landing System. As he went downward, Adam realized he did not at all feel disappointed. For the first time since he was sent on this tour of Purgatory, he actually had something to go on; not just a ghost of information but perhaps even something seen with own eyes and nearly touched with his own fingers. Even if the young man was not involved and Sarif was just another dead end, it still seemed so much more substantial. There was only one way to prove that, though. That way currently lead back to the place he had started his trip into the world of secrets and lies but two years before. Under his breath, Adam muttered to himself:

"It's funny how somethings take you right back where you left…"

 **TO BE CONTINUED IN**

 **CHAPTER 2**

 **factory front**


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

t

Adam was thoroughly soaked by the time he stepped into the lobby of Sarif Industries' Headquarters. The rain had not let up his whole walk back, and all he could do now was pull off his coat and hang it up to dry. Malik cornered him while he did so with Marley Dooley, a security guard that had been promoted to chief of security in Adam's absence, known as Mack amoungst his friends, and Malik's boyfriend, in tow.

"So what was that about not running off again?" Malik was not pleased and her severe sarcasm made it plain.

"Well, I did say something this time," Adam offered, keeping his tone casual so as not to further the pilot's ire.

Malik rolled her eyes at him exasperatedly, the attempt to sooth her clearly of little success. "Jensen, I swear–"

"What happened, Mister Jensen?" Mack asked, cutting off Malik so as to keep her from saying something they would all regret. He was a big man as his pseudonym indicated, taller than Adam was and built like a linebacker. Despite this, he was softhearted, something that showed in his soft, concerned tone.

"I saw something I hadn't in a long time."

"What's that?"

"Someone like me."

Malik and Mack both went silent. Adam didn't need to explain himself; his intensity explained all. With an exchanged look between him and Malik, Mack put a hand on Malik's shoulder and inquired further of Adam:

"What does that mean? After you defeated the Tyrants, we thought that would be the last of those Illuminati's super soldiers. At least, the kind that are out in the open."

Adam shrugged and shook his head. He wanted to snap that if he knew that, he would not have run all over creation trying to find the answer. The enforcer continued to keep himself in check, however.

"Is Sarif here? I think we need to talk right now about what he knows."

From the looks on the pair's face, Adam wagered they had known nothing of Sarif's information. Adam snorted at this, not at all surprised anymore. If there was one man capable of keeping secrets better than most, it was David.

"Yeah, he's where you'll always find him these days; up in his office." Malik's brow knit."What's going on Adam? David said this was just a favour he asked from you. I won't say I was entirely convinced then, but now I am really not. What's going on?"

Adam snorted again and his expression soured. He nodded for the two to follow. He would not lie to anyone ever again, especially not the only two who had been true to him. With the pilot and security chief in tow, he stiffly walked his way up the stairs and to the elevator. Once they had piled into the lift — which they had something of a tight fit inside of, Jensen made an amused note in spite of his foul mood — Adam pressed the button for the elevator to ferry them to Sarif's penthouse office and leaned against the wall. He looked from Malik's expectant, dark face to Mack's square jawed visage with its look of puzzlement. Adam glanced from one to the other a few more times, gathering his thoughts.

"Sarif said he knew something about the rumours of augmented extremist." Adam held up a hand as the pair started to both speak out in alarm in one accord. "No, I don't know if it's true. For all I know, it's another of his elaborate schemes to better the company at my expense. It is better than what I was working with, though, so here I am."

The couple looked as certain as Adam felt, doubt knitting Malik's brow and causing Mack to fidget with a wedding band on his hand, a new object that Adam would have to ask him about later.

"Yeah," Adam commented dryly. "That's what I said."

With no further words forthcoming in the wake of Adam's revelation, the trio waited for the arrival of the elevator at the penthouse office. When the chime went off and the door opened, they clambered out one by one with Adam at the forefront. His gaze explored the waiting room and its unusually barren state, something that Adam was beginning to realize was a disturbing consistency through the once resplendent Sarif building, as he marched on to the office of the man himself. He motioned to Malik and Mack to wait here despite their misgivings of letting him speak to Sarif alone, steeled himself for what would be beyond the door, and shoulder his way through the portal. He was not prepared for what greeted him behind the door, even with the intrapersonal shielding he had put in place. Much would have been hidden to the human eye by the lights that were strangely only half-functioning, but there would be no need for explanation of what Adam's synthetic gaze engaged upon.

Sarif's office was no longer messy in a way that brought to mind that cliché of "organized chaos" but was it had fallen into true disorder; the majourity of baubles and books had been piled in stacks upon stacks and shoved in a corner as if plans had been made to clean up but nothing had actually been accomplished. Many of Sarif's most proudly presented electronic trinkets had gone dim or died and never been restored to working order and even his TV screen, usually alive with both work data and baseball games, were on but muted or paused. It was like a tomb displaying relics of a past full of hope that was crushed, rather than the penthouse office of a bright, hopeful man wanting to press forward into the future. It reminded Adam too much of his old apartment and the lethargic depression it represented for his comfort. Adam moved on through it, and at the far reaches. There, in the evening rays of sun that poured through the window and granted what illumination it could, was the man himself. David Sarif, the dreamer, the leader, the liar.

Adam had obviously caught Sarif at the tail end of some ill-begotten conference because he had waved away holograms of unfamiliar faces angrily before turning to face Adam with flashing eyes set in a weary face that had aged greatly in the two years the aug had been gone. The spritely entrepreneur had been pulled under the brutal tide of questioning, legal suites, outright attacks on his character and person, and a floundering company, so that he now looked all sixty five of his years of age. His skin was beginning to show loss of elasticity and spots were fading into view here and there; his single tuft of grey hair had become a white shock straight through the black hair; and the lines of his face were only accentuated by his temper. Adam almost pitied what has become of his former employer.

"What is it?" Sarif snapped with uncharacteristic irritation, his voice cracked from using it all day and weeks of lost sleep. He tried to modulate it and the emotions behind it as the man peered through the haze of sun dazzling to get a sense of who he was speaking to. "I'm going to have another important call here in a moment."

"How important? Because I don't really have time to be put on hold like you did your friends just now."

Sarif's hand that was working his worn baseball around and around opened with a sudden jerk. In the silence that followed, its impact against the ground seemed thunderous to the older man, though it has no effect on the aug that stood before him. Like a specter, Adam was a shadow in the evening light, standing still and waiting with something that was not quite patience.

"Adam. You actually came." Sarif's mouth gawped open and his eyes searched about the grey clad figure in front of him, trying to find something more to say. "Oh my Lord," was all he managed.

"You look like you saw a ghost." Adam scoffed and crouched to pick up the fallen ball. He rolled the damaged sphere around in his own hand for a short moment before he threw it at Sarif.

Clumsily, David caught it while he continued to stare disbelievingly at Adam. "Might as well have. I didn't think you would take me seriously, not after..."

"Save it. I am not here to talk about the past." Adam waved the rest of Sarif's statement off and trotted to stare out the window. "I only came because you said you knew something about the terrorists."

"We don't know that they're actually terrorists, Adam."

Jensen looked at David, his bright eyes dulling with a mix of skepticism and distrust. "And how do you know that?"

"I don't," Sarif conceded. He spread his arms as he tried to convince Adam to really look and listen. It had the opposite affect, but Adam let him go on. "But we can't just assume it isn't just accidents, bad timing..."

Adam made a sound of malcontent. Some bad timing, he thought. "Just tell me what you got. We both are out of time for bandying semantics, you said so yourself."

"The meeting can wait." Sarif hid his reaction to Adam's new found increase in cynicism well, but his nose still crinkled involuntarily all he same. Spinning the baseball around and around in his hand, David spoke slowly. "Pritchard is convinced he has a good lead on at least one of them here in town. There's more, but that's the one we got.

"Are you sure? Pritchard is also convinced he can write TV scripts, after all."

Sarif grimaced and stepped over to stand beside Adam. He was tentative in his movements, but still had all intent behind them. "Don't be that way; you use to trust Pritchard as much as I do. Deep down, I am sure you still do."

Adam wanted to say he rethought who he put his trust. Instead, he questioned: "And suppose he is right. Who do you have in sights that is supposedly one of these people?"

Sarif almost smiled. "I think you just met him tonight."

Adam's heart skipped a bit though his face did not betray the surprise that spiked his emotions. Instead, Jensen tilted his head and made a gruff noise in the back of his throat. "How did you know about that? Malik tell you about what happened at the landing pad?"

"Not her but some of the others."

"And who was that suppose to be, exactly?"

Now Sarif was beginning to act like his old self; he was throwing the ball up and down and pacing back and forth as his free hand accented his words.

"There's no name out there, not a real one, that is; the media's dubbed him "the White Ripper". Always over-dramatic. You know how those talking heads are. He's been hitching rides from place to place in the world and leaving a trail of dead criminals behind. He's lookin' for something. What is anyone's guess, but that's why you're here, huh?"

"We'll see." Adam pursed his lips as he took all this in. White Rippers, dead cutthroats, a grand search; it sounded cartoonish. Especially since he could not put it with the image of the thin boy with the glowing blue eyes. "I have to find him again before I decide whether I am staying or not because, frankly, that isn't exactly great amounts of help."

Sarif turned his head in an attempt to force Adam to really look at him, his brow creasing subtly. If Adam hadn't been scrutinizing David for lies from the corner of his eye, he probably would not have noticed the masked anxiety. "Maybe I can help? I don't have as many connections anymore, but I still have the best ones. And Pritchard—"

Adam's voice was icy as he cut Sarif off. "I can do this on my own, thanks; I have my own resources and don't want anymore of your help. You've done enough."

David could no longer hide the knit in his forehead, his face pulling into a tight knot of guilt. "Look, Adam. Son, I am sorry about everything that happened. I want to make it up to you. We can work together again; we can solve this problem as a team. We have the resources and the people. We have you again. Can't we figure this out and get past what happened?"

Adam did not react with anger. He wanted to be angry, oh did he ever, but he was better then that. Instead, he pulled himself to full height and flicked his glasses open. Even though they were augmented and should have been lifeless, his eyes flashed with emotion that had long broiled under his surface, eating him alive.

"I didn't come back for you, Sarif," Adam explained flatly. "I came back because I have a job to do. Which I'm going to go do right now. You've helped some, but this is where we part ways for good. Now, if you want to give me somewhere to start, fine, but other wise, I am going now."

Sarif grimaced, as if Adam's words drove a knife between his ribs. "Adam, I'm sorry, but we don't have to go down..." The older man trailed off as something caught his eye on the screens.

Adam frowned and turned to look, his frown becoming a parting of lips as he saw what had caused Sarif to stop. The news broadcast read "LIMB Clinic attack: Suspected to be work of the augmented terrorists" at the bottom.

"Unmute that; I need to know if that is the downtown or central LIMB," Adam commanded.

David did not argue; indeed, he had already done as Adam wanted by the time the words had escaped the aug's mouth.

It was Eliza's voice, something that would have made Adam feel further bitterness if not for the fact he was transfixed on what she was reporting. The artificial woman narrated the scene of the downtown LIMB as the lights flickered then died out. The patrons and doctors poured out as quickly as possible through the front door, and from the looks of things, all had escaped. However, Eliza's tonelessly stated otherwise; two staff members had not retreated the sudden loss of power from neither a back nor front entrance.

"I can get there before something really happens. Code for your elevator still 0451?" Adam asked, his voice coloured again with determination as he decided on his next course of action.

"Yeah, what are you planning—"

"Do you even need to ask?"

"No, what I was going to say is how do you plan to actually affect the situation especially if it is the augs?"

Adam had closed the door and was being jutted downstairs without a response to David, ignoring as Sarif called out after the disappearing enforcer. As the elevator quickly descended and set Adam down in the lobby, he hoped Sarif took it as it being more reticence from the enforcer, because in all the truth, Jensen had no idea what he was going to do other than find a way to interrogate the kid that was supposedly one of the terrorists if he was involved in this. Adam might have to rough him up, distasteful as it would be, and drag him out, but he would find a way. Theoretically before his ever quickening pace carried him down several blocks to the blackened LIMB clinic. Any moment now...

Adam forgot to continue thinking on how to subdue the augmented boy boy as he navigated the streets of Detroit and waded through the escaped LIMB staffing and patrons to the front of the downtown LIMB clinic. Once he was there, Adam coaxed the police to let him in before they entered. The LIMB crowd was a patchwork of regulars who had been visiting and working at the clinic when Adam was with Sarif's company, but the police force was disturbingly made of many new faces except for Nicky. If it was not for him and a clever use of the CASIE, the enforcer would not have been able to break through the officers who dealt with Adam derisively. Any other time, he would have punched such obstructive policemen in the nose for putting their opinion in front of the safety of the citizens because he was tiring of such people. Regardless, the enforcer pushed through the door made heavy by its electronics failing much like the rest and stepped into the powered down building.

The clinic was dark, illuminated only by what light came through the windows from the buildings beside LIMB and the little moonlight the structuring of the city allowed. More shadows were cast than illumination, making the filter of bluish light a treacherous will-o-the-wisp beckoning for even one wrong step to be made. Adam was not one to be tempted easily, nor was he handicapped by the dark. He stepped through the empty hospital towards the surgery ward, following the faint echoing of distress that reached the aug from it.

Passing from room to room, the sound resolved into that of a fight in the ER at the back of the clinic. Adam poised himself to speed up to intervene, but the doors slammed open when a figure was thrown through. Adam reached out hands to catch the flying body, but there was no need, the person twisted themselves upright in a cat-like motion and came to a skidding halt on feet with arms outspread. The blades that sprang out and lit with blue electrical light made it unnecessary for Adam to ask who it was.

"We meet again." Adam's kept the bemusement out of his voice.

The boy from he had chased earlier in the night hissed at him in answer. He was both shocked and unhappy to see Adam again. "I don't have time for you." the knit of the young man's brow was deadly serious. "Busy with a creepo just now. Can we do this later?"

"What 'creepo' would have you so occupied?"

The boy would only grunt in answer and rushed back into the room. With no other choice left to him, Adam approached cautiously. One of Adam's hand slipped his old, scraped pistol from its holster while the other held open the door the boy had just bounded through. Adam's stomach turned and went cold as he was met with the gruesome spectacle in the ER hall.

One of the doctors was spread across the floor, his body spread in hewn chunks; an arm here, a leg there and the head that had rolled away from the torso that had been divided into halves; in a way that pointed to it being a torture method that ended in vicious execution. The other doctor, a woman Adam recognized from his few physical therapy sessions, lay at the feet of a large, shadowy figures. Her hands had been cut away and the wrist bled profusely, the bleeding added to by a second incision being created by a thin metal wire that wrapped around her neck, threatening to eviscerate it as well.

The boy had stopped several feet from the figure, facing him with eyes that burned with a desire to fight, trying to intimidate the large shadow into turning and leaving the woman alone to little avail. Something about the way the smaller aug seemed to want to lunge and wrench the woman free but did not disturbed Adam. He could see him shivering with tenseness, but the young man seemed almost frozen in place. It was obvious Adam would have to intervene or this would end poorly.

"I think you should listen to the kid; let the woman go." Adam said the words nonchalantly as he stepped into the room, making sure to step loud enough to draw attention to himself.

It proved ineffective; the figure did not glance at Adam, or if he did, the movement was so minute that it could not be picked out in the darkness. No words escaped the shadow's lips and he only pulled tighter on the cord that cut further and further into the doctor who was now making anguished pleading with the figure to stop while her eyes asked Adam to do something.

"What is it you want?" Adam had turned on his CASIE now, using one of its probing prompts to get some read on the big figure. All it reported was white noise visual and audibly, and the figure still did not speak. Instead, it turned and twisted the wire so that it untwined from the doctor. Adam's blood curdled as he caught the ill green glow reflecting behind the black lenses of a mask-like visor covering the upper half of the figure's face. These were all Adam could make of the intruder's face in the dark of the room and of a heavy hood worn by the figure. Whoever was in the darkness definitely male, though, and augmented. Another like the boy, Adam was sure.

The big man did not give Adam time to contemplate the implications of that; his wire slashed out without warning. Adam's arm came up to protect himself, cursing himself for being uncharacteristically distracted. It only grazed his arm and the figure had turned again so that the cord tied around the doctor neck. The boy was free of whatever kept him spellbound in that instant, and leapt into action just as Adam held up his pistol to shoot the blackened man.

It was already too late; the figure had ducked away from the boy, causing him to rush past and Adam's bullet to ricochet off the back wall. As the man came up, he yanked the wire, the knot closing and cutting off the woman's shriek of pain and terror. In an instant she dropped over sideways, her flesh, airways, and veins split open and spilling blood onto the already stained floor.

The reaction was immediate; Adam's stomach sunk and his teeth gritted while the boy shouted out in horror and anger. The latter whirled around again on the figure and unleashed his rage on the shadowy man in a flash of swipes. The electrified blades came close, the younger man was much faster than the bigger one and skilled in close combat as his fluid strikes made obvious by how he managed to cut a slice out of the figure's hood, but the man shrouded in shadows continually stepped out of reach after the lucky strike and waited until the boy's complicated attacks left him open to strike. When the boy extended his arm up and his leg moved out as he prepared to turn in upward sweeping kick meant for the bigger man's jaw, the shadow man's hand reached out and grasped the boy's leg. He jerked the young aug off his feet, hurling him at Adam when Jensen tried to join the fight.

Adam was able to dodge the boy who soon righted himself, but Jensen decided to switch back to shooting now that he didn't have to be precise. He let off shot after shot with his pistol, the modified barrel of the silent but fire-spitting weapon firing off bullets. One caught the man's shoulder, earning Adam an outburst of breath. The man recovered quickly and unleashed his bizarre weapon to pull the gun from Adam's hand. The young aug had recovered by now, though, and batted down the wire before it or the weighted knives that made up the ends could do Adam any harm. This surprised Adam, not expecting the boy's help. The two cast a look at each other and shared a nod to move in concert then moved to do so.

Adam's gun came up to fire again while the boy moved in while the shadow man was occupied with ducking into a side hall to avoid further damage.

"Oh no, you don't!" the boy's shout echoed as he bolted after the man, Adam in tow. The two came out ready to swing, but to little avail for, to their combined bemusement, the man was gone.

"There's no way out down this way!" the boy angrily spat out the thought running through Adam's puzzled mind.

Adam grunted and shuffled uncertainly into the hall, gun moving back and forth as he sought their target. The young aug stayed behind, scoping the hall the same way Adam did.

"Maybe he is in one of the ORs," Adam stated in a near whisper.

"I hope; I owe him a punch in the—" a yelp interrupted the boy's words followed by a snarl.

Jensen whipped back around, marvelling at how he kept missing the shadow man. Their assailant held the boy's neck in a firm but not suffocating grip in which the smaller man tried to twist out of and fight until with another pained yell, he went rigid, back arched, his fingers open and his blades shut closed. In a moment, darkness complete enshrouded them all.

With grit teeth, Jensen's switched on smart vision and raised an arm. He was done playing now and his own blade clicked and whirred to the forefront, ready to launch at the stranger who held the wincing and gasping boy downward. The green eyes in the folds of the hood of Adam's enemy was the only light now, burrowing into Jensen without fear of Adam's threatening gesture.

"I would not do that, Jensen. Or your young friend will be more than frozen." The voice that slashed apart the pregnant silence was deep but whispery, and a strange warble accented a few words out of his sentences.

"Put him down, and I'll see if you're advice is worth taking."

The shadow man did not speak again; he simply held Reese out between Adam and himself. Even in the dark, Jensen saw the fingers of one of the big man's hands digging into the boy's neck while the other held back his arms far enough that a quick movement would cause damage to both augmentation and the flesh it was bound to. The meaning was taken, but Adam never dropped his arm, hoping the other man would not catch onto the bluff.

"This isn't your fight, Jensen."

"Why is it everyone knows who I am, and I do not know anyone involved with everything I get sent to do? And assume I am here for the fun of it. Even better."

The big man was not shaken by Jensen's caustic words. "This is a war beyond you and the silly little group you work with. Take the boy and return home. Tell your people whatever you want, but your work is done. This fight is for us."

"Us?" The figure used the word the same way the boy has used "them" when he and Adam had first met, howbeit, the shadow man seemed to know what "us" referred to. Not that Adam's assurance of that made the man divulge anything. He threw the boy down at Adam's feet instead of speaking again.

Adam didn't hesitate to launch the blade at the violent man now that he was not in danger of hitting the boy. His target would not leave it up for Jensen to decide when the end was, however, slashing out with his wire to bat the blade away. It was distraction enough for Adam to rush the man, other sword bearing down on Jensen's opponent.

When Adam was within touching distance, his enemy did the most bizarre thing. He put out his hand and wrenched Adam's blade arm away as expected, but did not release it. Instead, the man's fingers dug into Jensen's metallic plating, the feeling of chrome grinding against chrome surprising Adam. He did not have time to truly register the meaning of fingers that had flesh but felt of metal; a fire of pain erupted in his frame, and his body went rigid as his augmentations locked up. In a moment, he was on the floor, his body free again, but static danced across his retinal sensors as they rebooted, warning messages blaring their caution against the streaming pixels. Adam wanted to curse, but even his jaw seemed lit up with pain and shut down with his mechanics.

"Take that as a warning, Jensen." the voice was retreating, and Adam scrabbled to see where it was going. "I don't want to take you out, but if you get in the way, I will not hesitate. This battle is not for you and Juggernaut. This is ours now. Mine."

Adam finally regained control of his body, turned fully about, and took a knee as he waited for his equilibrium to settle before he stood

"You have no id—" Adam cut off his retort when the figure simply blinked out of sight. Not cloaked, Adam knew what that looked like. The man had simply disappeared. He dashed to where the phantom-like man had been but found nothing. He was gone.

Adam did curse now, furious at himself and at the situation. He did not know how he was to pursue his target, and frankly was getting tired of people just running away from him. He turned back, therefore, remembering that the boy had been attacked in much the same way he had been.

Like Adam, the boy had begun to arise, but much more slowly. He sat on the floor and made awful sounds of discomfort and mumbled what Adam was sure was threats in the young man's mother tongue. As he did so, Adam approached the younger aug cautiously and put out a hand to offer him help up.

At first, the young man flinched away. He remembered well this man, the darkness not having at all hidden the form and voice from him.

"I can get up myself," the young man spat in a wary tone. "I don't want you pulling me off and sticking me in a cell."

Jensen rolled his eyes. He was too tired for dramatics. "I won't stick you in a cell. Technically, I don't have that authority anymore. In the usual sense. But it will work out better for you if you let me help you."

The blue-eyed boy glared at Adam a moment longer, but when Jensen offered no hostility, he took the hand and hauled himself to his feet. Once up, he immediately let go and backed away. Rolling his shoulder, the boy sulked:

"I like that guy less than you. At least I can hit you."

"Gee, thanks."

Despite his distrust of Adam, the boy gave Jensen something of a tight, Cheshire grin. "You're welcome. Now I have to go before that creepy guy hurts someone else. Was gonna ask him about what is going on, but I think he just needs to he stopped now."

"No, you're not leaving."

The boy's grin fell, a frown replacing it. "I don't get what you want, Gammel Mand. I can't help you with whatever problem you got."

"Maybe not, but I get the feeling it won't be safe much longer for you to keep going like you have been. There's a whole bunch of cops ready to bust in any moment now, and it would be pretty incriminating to find someone called the 'White Ripper' with a couple dead bodies. I certainly can't corroborate your innocence in all this when I don't know why you're here myself."

The boy's crinkled his nose. He did not care for the pseudonym the media had given him. "I didn't do nothing wrong, and I can take the police."

Adam's knit brow and pursed lips said all for him. Both augs were walking weapons, but even if the boy could take on the police, it would not only look bad and potential damage the boy, but would just cause Adam trouble. Which was not what he needed right now; he had enough trouble to deal with as it was.

" Okay, maybe I can't fight them since that'd make more trouble, but I know a way out." the young aug shrugged irritably."What more do you want me from me? 'Cuz if that's all you wanted to talk about, I gotta follow that guy. I need to kick his butt."

"And how do you plan to do that? He sort of disappeared, so unless you have some kind of tracking equipment, I don't think you're finding him." Adam's answer was calm but dry.

"I'll figure it out. Seeya, Grumpybutt."

The boy turned to get away, but Adam was not letting him get away a second time. The enforcer's hand shot out and grabbed the boy by the shoulder. His grip was firm, keeping the boy from making a break for some sort of exit or turning to hit him. Jensen was not losing him a second time.

"I want to catch him as badly as you do, but you can't do it alone."

"So you want us to work together or something?" The boy's eyes narrowed in distrust. "I don't work with people who want to hit me, just saying."

Adam was about to say no and shake his head, but he stopped before a single syllable was out. The enforcer was no fan of working with other people, especially not hotheads, but the logic of working with this boy who was one of these augmented "terrorists" dawned on him. Stubborn and childish though he was, the kid had skill and power and had to possess some useful insight into everything despite the boy's claims to the opposite. Besides, the more Adam talked to him, the deeper the feeling was that they were not so different; this kid wanted to know the truth and help people, judging from his comment about the murderer's evisceration of the LIMB employees.

Thus, Adam carefully inquired:"Suppose I said yes. What would you say?"

"I would say I would not trust you anymore than the creepy guy."

"Good answer, I applaud. You can trust me, though; more than I can trust you, I think. You're sort of wanted, so I am taking more risk to make the offer."

"I ain't a criminal, and I ain't killed anybody who didn't try to do the same to someone else."

"Prove it. You help me, I'll help you. I have a team behind me with better tools and a better network than you probably have, and you can make sure people realize your innocent in all this. What have you to lose if you come with me?"

"What's the catch? What do you want?"

"Nothing that you don't," Adam answered honestly.

The boy was quick to make a decision, maybe because of the pressure of the realization of police outside or maybe plain brashness, and held out a hand.

"Promise you want to help?"

Adam took the hand just as quickly as the kid had offered, knowing that if he hesitated, the boy would run. "Promise."

That got the young man's grin to return. "So, Boss, what now?"

"We go see someone who can help us track a ghost," Adam released the kid's hand and pulled up his collar. "Try to stick close; we'll go pick up what evidence we can from the bodies then go out the back. There will be less people to talk our way through."

"And if you can't talk us out?" The boy cocked his head as he made his inquiry.

"Then, please, for the love of all that is holy, don't kill anyone."

"Ain't a cop killer, Gammel Mand. I told you, only when they deserve it."

Adam waved it off, not wanting to offend the boy nor pursue the subject of such a young man speaking in so matter-of-a-fact a manner about who and who not to kill. "Let's go, then."

"Hey, wait," the boy hung back distrustingly as Jensen moved away towards the back of the clinic. "You didn't tell me who you are."

"Nor did you tell me your name."

The boy bit his lip."You first."

Adam shrugged it off and looked back when the young man fell back too far. "Adam Jensen. Now who are you kid?"

The boy, still wary but appeased, finally trotted over to walk at Adam's side, meeting the older man's eyes with no fear. His words, however, were what really grabbed Adam's attention.

"I don't know who I am, but I know my name. Reese. My name is Reese Macx."


End file.
